Germany detains British man suspected of spying for Russia
British police have confirmed that a 57-year-old British national has been arrested by German authorities on suspicion of his involvement in “intelligence agent activity” with Russia.
It comes after German prosecutors announced that they had detained the British citizen on Tuesday in Potsdam on suspicion of spying for Russia while working at the British Embassy in Berlin.
Prosecutors said in a statement that the British citizen passed on documents he received during his work at the British Embassy in Berlin to Russian intelligence in exchange for cash.
The prosecution follows cooperative investigations by German authorities and the British Metropolitan police, which resulted in the allegations.
The British man, currently being identified as “David S” under German privacy laws, is understood to have been working for Russia since November 2020.
His apartment apartment has been searched and he will be brought before an investigating judge later on Wednesday, the German statement said.
In a separate statement, the Met police said: “The man was arrested in the Berlin area on suspicion of committing offences relating to being engaged in ‘Intelligence Agent activity’ (under German law).
“Primacy for the investigation remains with German authorities. Officers from the Counter Terrorism Command continue to liaise with German counterparts as the investigation continues.”
British espionage in Berlin supposedly came to an end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.